The Lost Storm
by Lazie Mie
Summary: He was missing,and everyone's in frenzy searching for him.
1. Chapter 1

Notes : Starts the next day after the Pope told Sun that he'll be going to the Kingdom of Moon Orchid for the wedding (which we all know won't happen anyway) - reference somewhere in vol 3 chap 1.

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A gift for Gimei

Checked by Gimei (It's odd, I know).

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With (or without?) a dose of sillyness and oocness. A crack.

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Disclaimer : LSK is not mine.

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Seems like it was yesterday when I challenged Jacques and dueled with Son of the God of War instead. I did plan thousands of (reasonable) reasons to refuse his duel, but he just had to drop Captain's name.

He wants to fight with Captain?

_I can't allow that!_

I just can't let him ridicule Captain. Captain, who was far from weak, though only few knew. Thus I stepped up and fought with him, knowing full well that I'm going to lose.

The pain was unbearable, he ruthlessly slashed me on the chest even after a winner had been declared. But what was even more painful was the sight of Captain staggered backwards after healing me. His face pale. Was healing me that taxing?

_I'm sorry, Captain._

You couldn't even have your breakfast before being dragged to sing the hymn, and the patrol awaits after that. Did you even have a decent meal before you healed me?

_I don't think so._

Really, Captain. I really didn't mind you call me a fool, if that meant you will never know the truth. The reason why I accepted his challenge. You didn't have to. It was better that way.

_Just what have you done, Ed?_

Wearing the uniform and all, I was now ready for our daily training. But before that I need to wake up someone from his slumber.

"Wake up."

"Five minutes more..."

"Ed!"

"Ten, Adair."

_It increase__d__?_

"Captain is here." I whispered softly.

"What?" his eyes opened at once.

He looked around, and seeing no one else besides me, he roared, "Liar!"

"Awake yet?"

It was a norm for me to wake him up just before I went to conduct our daily training. He'll always be the last to arrive, panting. It was not like I'm being mean, he just can't wake up earlier than that. Believe me, I've tried. Like, two or three times? We started the training as usual except for one obvious fact. They were sulking. My very own platoon is holding a grudge against me. They're whispering towards each other, eyeing me in resentment.

"How despicable."

"What a bastard."

"He abandoned us and have fun all by himself!"

Innocent passerby will easily misinterpret their words into something else. Thankfully, they kept the protest among themselves. We just couldn't let the others know that our platoon is having some kind of internal strife, could we? Who knows what Captain will do if he heard about this?

And again, I was grateful that they didn't make much noise about our drill either. Even after getting an extra lap from Captain, which we all believe by now, the reason was Ed.

The whispering continues. I guess it couldn't be helped. Our platoon always held pride of knowing the latest gossip - I mean, the latest rumor of what happened in the Holy Temple. No wonder they got angry for not being able to share the latest juicy news, especially when they heard how awesome the fight was.

The chance to watch the match fade away as Captain ordered them to guard the _empty_ Holy Temple. Their attempt at begging him failed miserably. Of course no one dared to disobey his order. Being the only one allowed to watch the melee made me a despicable person in their eyes. I thought as time passed they will forget their resentment, though. It has been like... what? A week?

By now it was clear that they still hold some kind of dissatisfaction against me.

_Just move on, guys._

Till the end of the practice, the situation still didn't improve.

I've really underestimated them.

"Look, I've already apologized, right?"

_What else do you expect me to do?_

The resentment was still there.

"Fine. I'll treat you guys for a drink tonight."

"So you think your sin can be easily solved by that?" Ed protested.

_Don't tell me you'__re__ already tired of living, Ed?_

"My heart hurts." he added, pouting.

" How could you leave us? I thought we're comrades! How could you..." one of them even dramatically wiped out his non-existent tears. He rested his head on Ed's shoulder, and received a pat as consolation.

"There, there. You're not alone. It's just that we couldn't see the battle."

"Or fight against a witch together with the royal knights. That must have been awesome."

"It was all because we were stuck in the Holy Temple while a _traitor _conveniently watched the match."

I really had raised them the wrong way. To think they will act like this. Who do they think they are?

_A maiden in distress?_

They were lucky that they were not a part of the Judgment Knight Platoon. Vidar would't let it slide, he definitely would have welcomed them to the Judgment Complex with a warm smile. The crime? For being a total disgrace to the rest of the holy knights. Seeing him hold a whip would send chills down the spine, what with that baby-face of his.

"It's such a pity."

"Yeah, who knows when such a fight will be held again?"

Yeah, it was a real pity that we were nowhere close to a cliff. I really had the urge to kick them all down a cliff, one by one, to save me from all the whining.

It's kind of sad, but I couldn't do that.

They may directly meet the God of Light if I do so.

"Fine, a dinner then." I relented, recalling that the kitchen had a day off today.

"It's not like we're ungrateful or anything, but..."

"It you don't want to I don't mind." I shrugged, tired of their childish antic.

"It's a deal!"

"Sounds great."

One by one they voiced out their agreement to the bribe - well - to my offer, except Ed.

Seeing that he was the only one left, he muttered softly, "Traitor."

"Don't worry, Ed. As your friend, I'll be responsible in eating your share," the crying guy just now said, smiling earnestly.

"Hey, that's not fair!" protested the others.

"Let's have a bet. The reward will be Ed's dinner!"

"What's the bet?"

"Whether Tyler will accept Knight Captain Hell as his captain or not?" suggested the quiet one within the platoon.

"It's not like we'll know the result immediately."

As the bickering continue, I smiled and said, "See that? You have a whole day to think of the offer. Or the others may steal your share."

"You've promised!" Ed said. His decision was greeted by crestfallen faces of the rest, muttering complaints like 'how disappointing' and 'I thought you've got guts.'

I nodded. He must be broke again.

Done with the drill, I went to the kitchen to make breakfast for Captain. Vidar never understand why I went to great length in serving him.

_Making a breakfast is not a vice-captain's job, Adair._

I just smile. He was right. Making breakfast for Captain was not my job. Buying blueberry pies or ganging up on people were not part of my job either. What he didn't know was the reason I did all that because Captain was... well, Captain.

Though I do understand he said that due to lingering resentment for years being called Radar, which was done solely for Captain's amusement.

_Your captain really should learn others name by now!_

I just hide my smile. He didn't have to worry about that. Captain has perfect memory, proven by all the people my platoon and I have ganged up on throughout all these years. We even ended up ganging up on the wrong person when Captain first gave the order. Poor Elijah.

_Captain, please don't make more enemies than necessary._

A toast slathered with Knight-Captain Ice's blueberry jam and a glass of milk, plus some honey biscuits. Oh, I almost forgot to place a tomato on the tray. The cook had asked me whether I can't differentiate between apples and tomatoes when I asked her for the red fruit. I can only say that Captain had changed his preference. Finished, at last. What's left was for me to pass them to Captain.

I really didn't want to meet him, actually.

It was yesterday that Captain showed us his disturbingly dazzling smile.

He revealed that smile when he asked us to ganged up on Knight-Captain Earth. He used the same smile when he asked me to jump down the cliff times and times again.

_Jumping down, huh?_

The experience did change me... by a whole lot.

It was at that time that I learned of my real captain. He was perfect despite his imperfection. Only then did I realize that I want to serve him as his vice-captain. I will still serve him even if he's not my captain anymore.

_Captain, whoever you are, rest assured that Adair will always be at your side._

After a couple of knocks and calls for Captain, he opened the door just enough for me to hand him the tray, smiling brightly... no, it was not his usual smile. Smiling yesterday's smile, obscuring his words with praises for the God of Light, he told me that the special training will start tomorrow, details will be given to me later.

_He remembers._

I really should repent to the whole platoon.

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Then I went to my room, intending to finish correcting the rest of the paperwork. Of course I had a light meal before I started correcting them, a simple bread slathered with jam, which is not blueberry, and not sickeningly sweet like Captain. No, I didn't share his taste buds, which was a good thing.

_The kitchen day off..._

It reminded me of him, Vice-Captain Leaf. The whole continent knows Leaf Knight was a good guy, and knowing the real him, I won't refute the claim... much. My fellow vice-captain always concerned whether his captain had something to eat for days like this. He took great care of his money, else he can't give any for his Captain to borrow.

The first time I entered his room, I almost thought I was in the wrong room. For a nature lover, I'm not expecting his room to be full with all the graph and statistics glued to the wall. When I asked what it's used for, he just answered in a bored tone, "Just some analysis on the price of seasonings. How it fluctuates according to demand... so on and so forth... to help me forecast the price and make more accurate budget for the captain's next wages..." and continued to explain things only experts would deem interesting, which is also why Knight-Captain Storm loves him.

He was good at finance, though whether he was naturally talented or was forced to adapt (because of his captain) was open to discussion. I bet on the former. Really. He can easily helps Knight-Captain Storm estimate the monthly expenses of the twelve platoons, given the information provided was sufficient.

The said expenses would often become the reason for a peaceful discussion to escalate to a battle between those two and the Pope (Captain once involved - it was originally his responsibility - but it didn't take long for him to give up and dump the task to the Storm Knight instead), which was understandable as the Pope will ask them to cut out money for the unnecessary part, such as Knight-Captain Leaf's attempt to get some funds for seasonings for his upcoming journey with Captain, and _still_ cut out the money _even_ at the necessary part.

Like asking the Leaf Knight Platoon to make the shaft for their arrows themselves instead of buying them.

Or like how he refused to give more money so that the armor's made would have another function besides being a mere decoration.

My fellow vice-captain made me wonder; as amazing as he is, how did his captain _still_ end up as the poorest of the Twelve Holy Knights?

The question was answered not long after.

"Adair, what should I do?" he asked me in concern, lamented his captain's spending habit. He always give his captain the budget sheet every month without fail, and his captain always manage to disappoint him, without fail too, each and every single time.

Even after equipped with more accurate and detailed information of the price of seasonings between shops around the city - courtesy of Knight-Captain Storm, not to mention his haggling skill, the result remain unchanged.

One thing I learned.

_You will never win against your own captain._

I'm very thankful that buying blueberry pie for Captain was a joint responsibility between Knight-Captain Judgment and I. Recently even Knight-Captain Hell helped us in supplying Captain his never-ending dessert.

Seeing how he get distressed over his captain, I suggested, "If the salary is not enough, how about some side income?"

He paused and stared at me.

Contemplating, he finally said, "You're right. Now I need to choose between sales or service. Oh, right! We'll just stick with sales. For service the only thing we can offer are healing, but then the Pope will get mad, what with we fighting with his clerics to gain money. And it's not like we have that much reserve of holy light compared to them. Now what to sell... It must be something that can give high profit with little effort. And it would be preferable if the material was cheap, or free. "

Lost in his thought, he just rambled on what crossed his mind.

It will take countless papers for him to determine what's best to sell.

A few days later I met him at the market, smiling his business-like smile.

Well, let's stop his story here because I still have some works to do.

_Focus on the paperwork, Adair!_

Spending hours correcting them, (was it my imagination or did the workload increase?) I went to Knight-Captain Storm's room to return the finished ones to him.

"Knight-Captain Storm?"

No response.

_Weird. Even if it takes time for him to open the door, at least he will answer my call._

"Knight-Captain Storm?" I tried again.

I'm only met by silence.

_He's not dead yet, I hope?_

Recalling the amount of paperwork yesterday... it was really possible for him to - cutting all my thoughts, I immediately turned the knobs only to realize that the door was not locked.

_He left the door unlocked?_

Oh, right! The lock broke years ago. Not after Captain (and the others) secretly tossing paperwork and more paperwork to him. (I've got to wonder how the honorable knight-captains started learning that skill, with the exception of Blaze Knight.) Well they even do it openly nowadays. Entering his room, should I feel relieved that I didn't find him collapsed in the middle of correcting them? He's not even here!

_Where did he go?_

There was no meeting between the knight-captains, and it's not like there was any uprising whatsoever that require him to travel. In fact, everyday was peaceful, so peaceful that it felt a little eerie. Like the calm before the storm. And yet Storm Knight was missing.

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**A/N :** Vice-Captain Leaf's personality was borrowed from Lucathia's Vice-Captain's Tale, I just add _a bit_ about him. Not sure if I write him right though, or any character for the matter, which was open to discussion?


	2. 2 In the Meeting

Checked by Gimei.

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Disclaimer : LSK is not mine.

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I'd really, really want to ask the Pope for his hair. Just a strand will do. I've yet to succeed in the endeavor. He just rejected my proposal, again. The resigned look of my vice-captain was enough for me to know that I won't get any funds for the incoming adventure. He was one of the few that I've never asked for hair.

_Adventuring with Sun and getting no funds._

How unlucky can I be?

"I should visit some shops before I return." I said softly. My supply has reached its critical state and I'll be screwed if I don't restock them soon. How else can I fully enjoy Ice's sweets if there's no seasonings to accompany them?

"Captain?" called my vice-captain as he looked at me in worry.

"Ah, sorry. Just mumbling to myself."

"I thought you were just buying those thing last week? How can..."

"Things happened." I replied.

_I wonder the same thing too._

It was almost the end of the patrol anyway. In my mind I've already decided which shop I'm going to visit; somewhere close with affordable price, which sold some basic seasonings that can be applied to...

"Knight Captain Leaf!" saluted Adair.

I frowned.

_What happened?_

"There's a meeting between the knight-captains. You were asked to go to the meeting room immediately."

All my plans shattered at the words of Adair. I can only looked apologetically at my platoon.

"Don't worry. We'll wrap the patrol. Just go to the meeting, Captain." smiled my vice-captain. His smile seemed a little... genuine?

"Yeah, don't worry about us." supported the others. Their facial expression sure relaxed a lot when they heard I had to go.

_My seasonings..__._

"I'm sorry." I quickly apologized.

A meeting outside the usual schedule. Which only meant two things. Urgent and important.

Entering the meeting room, it was evident that I was the last to arrive.

Twelve people in the room including the Pope. I mean, it should be twelve, though I can only see ten people. Storm was not here. And I'll never be able to see Cloud. And Sun...

_You're here?_

"Storm was missing," Sun announced.

"What?"

"But why?"

"How did you know?"

Shrugged, Sun answered, "Adair told me."

I carefully asked, "You sure that he's not jumping into conclusion? Perhaps it was a coincidence for Storm to not be in his room when Adair came."

"It's already evening, Leaf."

"And?" I asked, unable to understand.

"He was nowhere to be found. His paperwork takes up all the space of his table. Some even resorted to place the paperwork on his bed. And that was what happened at noon. It won't be long before his room going be congested with them. Or perhaps it already is."

"He was not here all day long?" I exclaimed.

_Don't tell me something happen to him?_

"Adair this, Adair that, what you've done actually?" Earth asked in a bored tone.

"Arranging for this meeting!"

"Ah... But I thought it was_ Adair _who asked us to come?"

Oh, no. They were fighting again.

_Judgment, do something._

"Be serious, guys." admonished the Pope.

Both of them obediently closed their mouth.

"So...when was the last time anybody saw him?" the Pope asked, his stare penetrated each and everyone of us.

"Well I had a breakfast with him yesterday." Blaze said.

"I'm certain he was still in his room when I get my share of paperwork from him last night."

"So he was missing from last night?" the Pope asked again.

"Based on the amount of paperwork I saw this morning, it's possible." Earth answered.

"Care to tell us what did you do in his room?" Sun asked, his perfect smile executed.

"None of your business."

Ignoring both of them, Stone voiced out his suspicion, "Is there a chance he's in the castle? I mean he went there yesterday so- "

"Impossible." denied Earth.

"In the Sanctuary of Light?" Stone tried again.

"He'd rather die."

"Getting lost while strolling around?"

"That would be Neo." answered the Pope.

"Collapsed of exhaustion in the middle of nowhere?"

"Nope, there's Adair. He won't let Storm die." Cloud replied, his voice barely audible.

"Right. We're lucky to have Adair here. He's the one who keeps Storm from dying while a certain someone keeps trying to kill him with paperwork!" agreed Earth.

"I still remember the day when Storm had reached his limit and plan to run away from the Holy Temple." I mused softly, recalling the time when no amount of consolation was enough to convince Storm to stay here. We were just being the official Twelve Holy Knights at that time, and Storm's workload increased by ten-fold overnight! He even started packing, saying that anywhere will be better than being a paperwork's slave in the Holy Temple. That was _after_ he took revenge on Sun for the ninth... or tenth... I'm not really sure.

"And changed his mind the moment Adair knocked his door and offered to finish part of his captain's paperwork!" continued Blaze.

And not long after another name was added in the list of Adair's admirers - I mean... Adair's fans.

Silence followed through.

_Ah... This is not a meeting between the 'Do me a small favor'' club member. I really should not voice out my thoughts aloud._

"Whatever Adair do, the issue now is to find Storm as fast as possible." the Pope reminded us about the objective of the meeting.

"But isn't it impossible for him to go out undetected? I mean, with his blue hair..."

"He may have worn a cloak." suggested Sun.

"Or climbed up the wall." contributed Judgment casually.

_Climbing up the wall is something you would do, Judgment._

Evidently everyone thinks of the same thing, seeing how they all turned silent after his word.

"But why did he do so?" Cloud asked, his small voice can be heard clearly amidst the silence.

All stares turned towards Sun in unison.

"What? It's not my fault!"

"So it's not your fault for dumping all your paperwork on Storm? And now he's sulking." accused Earth.

"Even Adair is not enough to save him this time. I really can't fault him for running away." Moon sighed.

"The Holy Temple is going to collapse soon." Stone bitterly added.

"You should repent, Sun. How about correcting Storm's paperwork for a week?" Earth suggested in his honest and sincere manner.

"Make it a month." chimed Metal.

"I don't think it was Grisia's fault?" Hell interrupted.

_Hell Knight is the loyal subordinate of the Sun Knight, indeed._

"You're new here. Lesson number one, all troubles usually originated from Sun." advised Earth.

_Can't agree more._

"No, it's not!"

"It is!"

"It's not!"

"Another pointless argument and I'll personally see that your salary is deducted by half, Sun."

"Hey, that's not fair! You have no right- "

"But I do." the Pope interrupted.

"Fine!"

Earth smirked, "Serve you right."

"You too, Earth." added the Pope casually.

"For Storm to disappear without telling us... maybe he's secretly getting married." Moon came out with another theory that I wouldn't believe will ever happen to the blue-haired knight.

"Why must he keep it secret?"

_That was a good question, Stone._

"To escape from paperwork that going to be generated from his wedding?"

"Impossible! I'd rather believe Sun is the Demon King!"

_To be honest I always thought he was even worse than a Demon King._

"Or this good guy Leaf marries a princess!" Blaze chimed in.

_I would appreciate if you didn't tur__n__ the topic of conversation to me, Blaze._

"We're talking about Leaf, here. He won't snatch someone else fiancee for himself. He's not Sun!" refuted Earth.

_I indeed wouldn't do something like that, but the last sentence was not needed. Sun won't like it._

"Who says the kingdom has only one princess?" Blaze snapped back. Another silence followed suit. Frankly, I always thought Blaze a bit lacking in intelligence department. Judging from the silence, it was evident everyone was thinking the same thing.

"One of the princesses is barely ten-years old." Cloud informed softly, breaking the silence.

"Sorry, my mistake. I was wrong." Blaze immediately apologized.

"Don't worry, Earth. Sun won't do something like that."

Surprisingly it was Metal who came to Sun's defense.

"Because it's not like he brings Hell along on the journey." Metal continued matter-of-factly.

"Pfttt..." sounds of stifled laughter could be heard all around the room.

"Whether he brings me along or not, he won't do anything that will deviate from the knight code of honor. Grisia is a good Sun Knight." Hell solemnly said.

_Oh, another defender for Sun._

"The important thing right here is for someone to tell where Storm might be right now." reminded Judgment, his deep voice ringing in the air.

"If there are no clues, we need to arrange for a search team."

All hands were raised at once.

"Let me find him." I offered.

_I'm worried about him._

Blaze immediately protested, "No, no. It should be me. I'll find him real quick. Or else..."

_Or else there's no one to correct your paperwork._

"Judgment, how long could we wait for Storm?" the Pope asked.

"If nothing was done, at most a week."

"Leaf, will everything be okay if Storm returned after a week?" asked the Pope again.

"Eh? Won't he be dead by then?"

"Even with Hell's help?"

"Half dead."

"Which means, before we find Storm, everyone's going to correct his own paperwork. Judgment, you're responsible for the knights under you."

"Sure."

"And for the warm-hearted faction..."

Contemplating, the Pope finally said, "Cloud, you're in-charge. Except for Sun's part. He's going to report it to Judgment."

"Hey - "

"Else would you prefer if I cut your salary to half?" the Pope quickly uttered an old yet effective threat to our dear leader.

"Too bad, Sun. I'd _love_ to help but..." snickered Earth.

"Just shut up!"

"And Storm's work?" Cloud asked softly.

"_His_ leader is going to do his work." chimed the Pope matter-of-factly.

"That's all for today. You may discuss the arrangement to look for Storm tomorrow. Dismissed."

The Pope then adjourned the meeting (which should be Sun's role though usually Judgment ends up doing it) and was the first to leave the meeting room.

I went back to my room and started correcting my paperwork. Immersed in the job, it took me some time to realize someone knocking my door.

_Who?_

Opening it revealed the frozen Ice, handing me my share of sweets.

I want to fetch the appropriate spice that match the sweets only to remember that it was already empty. Which means I'm left with no choice but to take out one of the sweets and place in inside my mouth, all action was done under Ice's attentive gaze. The taste was... not bad actually. It was kind of refreshing to eat it as it is occasionally.

Seeing me taste the sweets, a small frown was not etched on his face this time. He quickly left before I can thank him. His step was light and there was none of that familiar chilliness accompanying his departure either.

_How strange._


	3. 3 His Past

Checked by Gimei.

A/N : Some details were taken from Lan's short comic, A Spell of Happiness, translated by Lucathia in her lj.

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Disclaimer : LSK is not mine.

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The meeting just now... it was weird. While everyone was worried about Storm, I wonder why they were not worried about Adair. Surely Sun's vice-captain was the most affected of Storm's disappearance? We can't afford to have another person run away from the Holy Temple! Still...

_Storm, where are you?_

When Sun told us Storm was missing, at that moment I clearly understand why he attended the meeting. His capable assistant (besides Adair) was nowhere to be seen, which thus, also explained why the Pope was also there.

I'd never expect him to be missing, not after he was dumped with countless paperwork that found its way to his room.

What was he doing right now?

If, as they said, he was running away from his work, will it please him if we find him?

Or will he attempt another disappearing act?

What is right and what is wrong?

Too many things to think about and too many things to consider. I was worried but there was nothing I could do to help.

_Help?_

Perhaps there_ is_ something I could do to help.

Opening the cabinet, I checked on the ingredient stored. Thankfully it was enough for twelve... or eleven people.

Though it's going to be late, surely they'll still be awake, even more so with no Storm to dump their work to.

_Well, then. What should I bake for them?_

* * *

I've knocked on the door to each and everyone of them, who similarly looked a bit surprised and smiled as they accepted the sweets. The last person for me to give the sweets to was Leaf, a good guy from the warm-hearted faction. While it takes some time to figure out the preference for each of the Twelve Holy Knights (with Cloud being the hardest), Leaf was a different case altogether. I will never understand him.

What kind of guy will add seasonings to his sweets?

Though it did take multiple attempts to make desserts that suit each and everyone's preference, what distinguishes Leaf from the others?

Why did every attempt fail?

Even when I tried to vary his sweets, occasionally added his favourite seasonings in his sweets, he too, will change the seasonings sprinkled on top of the sweets accordingly, and only then will he eat them for me to see, genuine smile naturally formed and words of gratitude followed suit.

Just you wait, Leaf.

_I'm going to defeat you and your seasonings!_

Thankfully years of training prevented me from revealing my true feelings and I will quickly leave, afraid all the effort to become the Ice Knight would shatter in a single moment of fury.

Plus the fact that he's truly a good guy, innocent smile easily formed for all to see, reminded me quite a bit about my old self, when all the people I met would return my smile. It was reassuring to see that his smile was just as gentle as ever, unchanged, even after he became Leaf Knight. Even after he was bullied by Sun throughout all these years. He's strong. Even Storm had snapped years ago.

He was a person I could never be, though does it matter?

I had doubts in the past, but I'm here because I want to. Because Grisia had taught me there was different ways to replace smiles.

And now I'm here, right in front of his room. Leaf's room. He opened his door after a few knocks. Wordlessly I handed him his sweets, eyes trained to see what kind of reaction he would show me.

Or what kind of _seasonings_ he would add this time.

After pausing for five seconds he placed the sweets in his mouth.

_Eh?_

My eyes widened slightly at the scene.

The next second, a small smile elicited as he was savoring the sweets, eyes closed.

No.

I must leave before my emotions leaked out for him to see.

I left without waiting for his words of gratitude, and at last allowing myself a small smile as I lie on my bed, door safely locked to prevent anyone from seeing the Ice Knight smile.

My first victory.

_Sweet._

* * *

Thinking back, all this would have never happened if I hadn't met him.

I could never see him as the cold, collected Ice Knight. Never, except when he was in public. I didn't understand why his teacher chose him as his successor, or why he chose me either. At that time I didn't know the nice big brother who showed me the way to my customer's house would then bring me to the Holy Temple. He kicked open a door and said, "Chasel, here's my student! He is..." turning towards me, he asked, "Kid, what's your name?"

"Ecilan."

"Right, Ecilan. Or Lan for short." big brother introduced me to a man cladded in black, and even gave me a nickname.

"And why did you choose him?" the man asked calmly.

"Because his bread was delicious!"

Big brother was then dragged by the man to... I don't know where they went to, leaving me alone in the room.

"Chasel! Do you know that -" not long after, similarly opening the door without knocking, another man came and stopped his sentence as soon as he saw me.

"Wen, don't tell me he's Chasel's kid?"

"I thought it should be Neo!"

"Surely Neo won't hide his kid here?"

They were whispering but it was loud enough for me to hear them clearly.

The green-haired man... maybe he's a knight, dad said everyone in the Holy Temple is a knight... The knight asked kindly, "Kid, what are you doing here?"

"Big brother brought me here, and later on was dragged by the black knight somewhere after he said that I'm going to be his student. I'm waiting for him to come back."

"There's someone among us who still didn't decide on his student yet?" the knight asked his friend.

"Must be Eller."

"Anything the big brother said before he left?" the knight pressed further.

"He said the reason he wants me to be his student was because he likes my bread."

And that was weird, because he didn't look like a cook, or a baker.

"This is too much! How could Eller be going around kidnapping kids just because of a bread? We must report this to Chasel!"

As if on cue, the door was opened again and both big brother and the black knight entered.

"Eller! How could you kidnap this kid?"

"I didn't! He came here on his own! Right, Lan?" big brother immediately retorted back. The green-haired knight looked at him suspiciously.

Ignoring his gaze, big brother turned his attention to me and said, "Let's go. I still need to announce you as my student."

"Student? Me?"

_Had I ever said I want to be his student? I don't think so._

"Eller, did you explain anything to Ecilan before you brought him here?" asked the black knight.

"I didn't?" Instead of answering, big brother asked back.

"No, you didn't." I replied.

"Oh, sorry. I'm Ice, and you're going to be the next Ice Knight. The man clad in black is Chasel, he's the Judgment Knight. The green-haired man is Leaf... it doesn't matter even if you don't remember him anyway, and that's Stone. Let's go. We're already late."

_But I don't want to. _

I stood rooted at the spot. I don't want to be his student. I have my own dream, and being a holy knight was not part of it.

"Just give up, kid. Our Ice Knight is very stubborn. He won't let you say no."

"But big brother said you're the Stone Knight." I protested softly. The whole continent knows Stone Knight is the most stubborn among the Twelve Holy Knights. If big brother is the Ice Knight, he should be less stubborn than the Stone Knight. Everyone knows this.

"If you don't want to be his student, you can be my back-up student. I still haven't chosen one yet." Leaf Knight offered with a smile.

"No, he's mine!"

"Says who? I won't listen to a kidnapper's words!"

"I've told you I'm not! Lan, tell them you want to be the Ice Knight!"

"I -"

"-don't want to be the Ice Knight. Big brother Eller is scary~" continued Leaf Knight as he covered my mouth.

"Stop bullying him!" scolded big brother.

Leaf Knight immediately hold up both his hand and denied, "I'm not."

Completely panic, big brother said, "Lan, tell them, please? Tell them that you want to be my student."

"I'm sorry, but I -" my words was cut again as big brother covered my mouth.

"Hey, that's cheating!" exclaimed Leaf Knight.

"See? I've told you he's stubborn." Stone Knight shrugged helplessly.

"Stop it, Eller."

An order from Judgment Knight and big brother immediately obliged.

"Look, I'm sorry. Maybe I didn't explain to you enough. There are some benefits if you become my student. I will teach you a bunch of ice magic and swordsmanship. And later you will work with Chasel's student. His student should be someone decent, far better than whoever that troublemaker Neo picked up as the next Sun Knight. Believe me, you will never want to work with someone like him."

If that's so, I shouldn't be the Ice Knight in the first place. Sun Knight is the leader of the Holy Temple, and his position was even higher than that of Judgment Knight. The whole continent knows that.

_Big brother, are you sure you're trying to convince me?_

"You can't lump Neo's student together with him! Who knows if he turns out better than Neo?"

_That's a bit reassuring._

"No, I'll never let Neo's student corrupt him!" big brother said indignantly.

_Okay, now I'm worried._

"Big brother, I -"

Cutting my words again, big brother said, "And... And we'll give you allowance every month! Besides that the Twelve Holy Knights are quite popular with the ladies!"

His voice then turned gloomy.

"Oh, you're just a kid. Maybe you don't care about these kind of things."

I didn't dare to mention I did end up with a sort of fan club while helping out at the church, so it doesn't matter even if I don't become a holy knight. Though I don't think big brother is someone who cares whether or not he's popular among females either.

"And you'll deal with politics, correct paperwork, protect people...wait it's all work...and...and..." as he grew more and more dejected, even Judgment Knight helped by patting his back as silent support.

"Going to the meeting every week, searching for Neo once every few days, helping Chasel settles Neo's messes, patrolling, with no one to give me delicious bread like you did..."

_That sounds hard. And it seemed to me you're complaining? _

"Don't complain too much. You're in a different faction than Neo. We definitely suffered more."

For once agreeing with big brother, Leaf Knight's words convinced me that it would be better if I refuse to be their student. But how did the conversation turn this way?

"At least Neo hasn't caused any trouble today." the quiet Judgment Knight suddenly voiced out his opinion.

I had a suspicion that he was trying to defend the guy called Neo.

"But you know what, Lan?" big brother's voice surprisingly brightened up.

_There's more?_

Accompanied with a sweet smile, he continued softly, "You can still bake here. I'll allocate some time for you to spend in the kitchen."

"Really?"

"Of course!"

_Maybe it's worth a try, me being the Ice Knight._

And still be a baker at the same time.

"Can I really be the Ice Knight?" I asked Judgment Knight. I remember that he is the leader of the cold-hearted faction, and Ice Knight is one of his subordinates, so the final decision was still up to him.

"If you want to." Judgment Knight replied, his tone gentle.

I smiled, and placed a bag of bread on Judgment Knight's desk before reached out to hold big brother's outstretched hand.

"For you three!"

"If you're scared of big brother Eller you are always welcome to be my back-up student!" Leaf Knight issued a second invitation to me.

"You can't steal him away from me!"

"...says the kidnapper."

"I'm not!"

* * *

The next day, while waiting for the holy knight to come to teach us, my heart was filled with nervousness and anticipation. I hope our first lesson will be taught by one of the holy knights I met yesterday. Turned out it was the Stone Knight.

"So today I'm going to teach you the most important skill for a holy knight."

"Must be swordsmanship, right?"

Stone Knight shook his head.

"Our holy light ability, then?"

"Nope. Map reading."

_Seriously?_

_Or perhaps I'm the only one who didn't know about it?_

Taking a glance of everyone present, it seemed that they all share the same disbelieving look like me.

"Liar."

One of them whom I've yet to know his name was even bravely refuted the holy knight's words.

"You can't say that in front of the Twelve Holy Knight!" someone who reminded me of the Judgment Knight (except his clothes was not black) immediately reprimanded the boy.

Still the kind person I remember, Stone Knight squatted down to the boy who called him a liar, and said while ruffling his hair, "You wouldn't know how important the skill is until you have a companion who couldn't master it no matter what."

_Was he the Neo guy they were complaining about?_

"Someone like that exist?" the boy version of Judgment Knight asked.

"That's right."

* * *

That was my first memory with Teacher and all the knights from the cold, cruel-hearted faction. Once I had shared my past with the warm-hearted faction, but stopped right at the part where Teacher offered to show me the directions to my customer's house as Sun broke into laughter, saying that Teacher almost sounded like a kidnapper.

_I just couldn't tell them Teacher Wen said the same thing, could I?_

I wanted to report to Teacher that I finally made Leaf smile with my sweets, yet he was no longer here. Hopefully he will visit me so that I can tell him all the things that happened since he left.

Ah, I really miss him.

* * *

A/N : If the same lesson was conducted for the warm-hearted faction, I really want Neo to be the one who teaches them about the subject xD


	4. 4 A Tea Party

Checked by Gimei.

* * *

Disclaimer : LSK is not mine.

* * *

Chasel Judgment

* * *

It was a day just like any other, with chattering about the fight for the princess's hand still floating around. The knights (both from the castle and the Holy Temple) animatedly speculating the Hell Knight's identity, and their regret for the fight to end half-way.

Didn't they get tired talking about the same thing already? Though I too, was interested in his identity. If Elijah was not him, who was it then? Lesus didn't send me any letter, so I guess everything was well there.

Entering a book shop, I was greeted with a simple 'hi' from the shop keeper before he proceeded to serve his next customer. He (and some of the shop owners I'm frequenting) were well-accustomed in serving the former Judgment Knight now, and didn't freak out like the first time I tried to buy things from them. Looking at the selection displayed ( but remembering there won't be much space left at home if I keep on buying new books), I left the shop with a promise to return next time.

I should rearrange my books and try to empty up some space for the new ones.

Perhaps I should contact Demos and offer a trade; or ask the Pope if I'm allowed to access the library... and maybe see Lesus along the way.

Returning home, I immediately headed to my book shelf, feeling rather conflicted in deciding which book I'll sacrifice for a trade with Demos (assuming he's interested in doing the same). Or maybe not. I'll just clear up some space for a new book shelf. There were a few titles I'm interested in buying...

_Bang!_

My door opened up by itself just when I thought of leaving, even if I didn't cast any kind of spell that allow it to do so according to its owner's will.

"Hi, Chasel."

Or to be correct, it was kicked open by a certain someone.

Thinking back, perhaps such a convenient door does not exist.

Waving at me with a casual 'long time no see', I could only sighed, "You don't change at all."

"Well, it'll be a second faster this way." he grinned, repeating the same excuse.

He was still the same Eller years back, still using his feet to enter. It was a habit developed ever since I said any news regarding Neo (especially his whereabouts) should be delivered as soon as possible. Fortunately it was done when no one was around... no, it was even done when there were people around. And of course, the only door safe from the kick was Neo's, because he really didn't want to see Neo with his facial mask on.

"Once was more than enough." he said with a horror stricken face. That was his complaint after giving a full five minutes details of Neo's face in which I simply concluded as 'a nightmare'. I was extra careful opening his door henceforth.

"Chasel, tea, please." His request snapped me back to reality.

Bringing along various assortment of breads and cakes, he placed them on a plate I passed to him. In my judgment, it was a little more than what two people can finish.

With breads and cakes plus some tea to accompany us in our conversation, he immediately started his epic tales of Ecilan, starting from the time when he met him and was treated with a bread to ease his hunger.

…_which was his fault for hiding from me __in__ the first place._

"Lan is the nicest kid I've ever met, and the moment I saw him, I immediately knew he's my Ice Knight!" he repeated his praise over his student. Sometimes I wonder if he will ever get tired of repeating the same line over and over again.

_You sure it was not because he knows how to bake__, Eller__?_

To be honest I whole-heartedly agree with Wen and was tempted to accuse him of being a kidnapper as well, thirteen years ago. The Ice Knight of mine insisted in taking Ecilan as his student, disregarding the fact that he was not one of the participating candidates. I do pity the kid, seeing he get bullied by both Eller and Wen. The only one trying to help was the supposedly stubborn Stone, who of course, was not stubborn at all.

"…But then the Pope threatened to cut my salary for choosing Lan instead of the kids participating in the selection! The betting for the Ice Knight was going to be cancelled if Lan was chosen, no wonder he got mad."

I was all too glad for Lesus to be one of the candidates for the Judgment Knight, even if he was a day late in joining the selection.

"So I threaten him back, saying he's going to lose the Ice Knight right that instant if he forced me to part with Lan!"

"And then?"

Looking somewhat surprised, he asked back, "I've never told you about this before?"

I shook my head.

"That's weird." he frowned.

It was indeed weird. Even if I didn't hear directly from him, surely something like this will be known to some of us? Threatening the Pope would be a juicy topic to talk about; especially here in the Holy Temple that's filled with gossips and rumors all around.

"Oh, I know why! He told me to keep it secret! Saying he didn't want others to threaten him using the same threat... something like that. Well anyway they were all safe and sound, both my salary and my Lan." he smiled happily, helping himself to the tea.

"Now it's your turn. What were you talking about after Lan and I left? For the kids' first lesson to be changed to something else?"

I smiled. It's been years and here we were, talking about the past, the day before we became teachers.

That day, it was still clear in my memory.

* * *

"For you three!" the twelve-year-old Ecilan smiled, and quickly followed Eller after leaving his bread on my desk. He was a well-mannered kid. Hopefully he could get along with Lesus.

As the sound of their footsteps faded, Wen asked, "So, Chasel. Where do you keep your tea?"

_Now they plan on having a tea party in my room?_

I guess it can't be helped. Ecilan did say the bread was for us.

I placed the bread on a plate and boiled the water. Then I reached out and took one of the bags of tea that was arranged neatly in the drawer. Stone helped by taking out cups for all of us, knowing perfectly well where I kept them.

"Black tea for me."

"Me too."

I'm sure I've never heard of Judgment Knight taking orders from the others. It's been ten years and yet my fellow knights are still not scared of me. Though things would be difficult if they were. Communication going to be hard. Should I thank Neo for things to turn out this way?

"So, why did you come here?" I asked as I poured tea for the three of us.

"Same old news. That stupid king planned on increasing tax for the castle's renovation, so the prince asked Neo to come to the castle tomorrow to settle the matter. We can ask Lanbi to accompany him." replied Stone.

"Ah, he also asked us to remind Neo that he needs to use gentler method in persuading that stupid king. The castle can't suffer casualties like last month." added Wen, taking a piece of the bread.

He took a bite and commented, "Eller was right. Ecilan knows how to bake. It's a pity our teacher didn't go around kidnapping any young baker to be their student."

I was still wondering if breads should be allowed to be a decisive factor for choosing a holy knight.

It seems that Stone shared the same concern as he voiced out his opinion, "But do you really think it'll be okay, Chasel? I'm quite worried about Ecilan."

"He'll be just fine."

Since the one choosing Ecilan was the stubborn Eller, he should make it work somehow.

"I'm more worried about Neo's student." I sighed.

"Are you afraid because he's going to be a teacher now? Or because he _can't _be a teacher given his tendency of getting lost at least once a week?" asked Wen.

"So it's decided that their first lesson should be map reading!" concluded Stone.

"Why can't Neo learn it? It's not that hard! Forget map reading, he can't even differentiate between left and right! It's been twenty years already! I suspect there's something wrong with his brain!" Wen complained, obviously mad with his leader's ability of getting lost in his own city.

"It just so happened that his brain was full of swordsmanship that learning other things will be naturally rejected. Anyway I do hope Neo's student will make things easier for us in the future."

I can sense a tinge of hope from Stone's voice.

"Everything will work if his student has a capable vice-captain. Our burden reduced significantly since we have Kleenly!" exclaimed Wen. The warm-hearted faction had thrown a party for themselves; that is, drinking to death in celebration of Kleenly becoming Neo's vice-captain. Lanbi was the happiest, since it was he who was usually entrusted with the task to accompany Neo on his trip, usually to 'visit' the king. He just need to ask Kleenly where his captain was instead of searching around aimlessly. Half of the time, Kleenly knew the answer.

Strings of curses to Neo and endless praise for Kleenly overflowing in their laughter filled conversation. And the next day they were the first group to come to the meeting room, which won't mean much, seeing how they were totally wasted. In the end the meeting was cancelled and their job for that day was taken over by their respective vice-captain.

Our vice-captains also held a celebration for Kleenly for the same reason. Fortunately they still had some conscience and chose a different day than the warm-hearted faction, or else half of the Holy Temple's operation will be halted.

"_He's a favourite, even if he's a little late in joining us." Noley smiled as he reported to me on Kleenly's progress._

Completely agreeing with Wen, Stone smiled wryly, "The ironic thing was the one who has been training him is Noley instead of Neo."

Looking at me, he asked, "Hey, Chasel. How many times did he try to escape from your vice-captain?"

"Just once."

That was what Noley told me, and he quickly assured me he had prepared some countermeasures to prevent the same thing from happening again.

I'll say Kleenly got guts, to run away from the training and defy my order. He was indeed the suitable person to assist me in keeping tabs on Neo. Whatever countermeasures my vice-captain mentioned was proved to be effective, seeing how Kleenly instantly paled seeing him instead of me, for a period of time.

_And why__ are they looking __at me with admiration? I'm not the one training Kleenly._

"Hopefully Neo's student will have Kleenly number two at his side." Stone softly said.

"Yeah, I agree. Following the tradition, the vice-captain of the next Judgment Knight will train the next Sun Knight's vice-captain!"

_You sure it's a tradition, Wen? _

"Which means besides Kleenly number two, we will have Noley number two too?" Stone asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Exactly!"

Taking another piece of bread, Wen sighed with regret, "Can't I just steal Ecilan from Eller already?"

Stone softly remarked, "Eller should be careful. Some of us might really kidnap Ecilan for good."

"Who?"

"Hayseth."

* * *

After I finished recounting the past, adding more details than necessary while I was at it, Eller merely commented, "So that's the reason! I've always thought it was weird to have the lesson suddenly changed! Should have known that it was Stone. Map reading, huh? He always worries too much."

Sighing, he continued, "Our students sure are lucky, to not have a Neo among them."

_I don't really think so. Grisia was equally worrying._

"Anyway Hayseth never asked to trade Lan with Vival."

"He doesn't need to. Because Ecilan bakes for everyone." I smiled.

"And you guys are already worried about the vice-captains? What do you mean by Kleenly number two and Noley number two? Seriously, they were just a bunch of ten-year-old kids at the time!"

Eller was right. Though it can't be helped, for us to have Neo as our Sun Knight.

"Ah, right! How's the bread? Not bad, right?"

"It's quite- "

A knock on the door interrupted my words. Ah, I sure have a lot of guest tonight. Uninvited guest, if I may add. Eller quickly opened the door and closed it back just as quick.

"Wrong house." he said to me.

Just as I began to sip my tea, the knock grew even harder, accompanied with colourful insults to the former Ice Knight. I looked at him and sighed, opening my door to the second... and third guest.

"Hi, Chasel." Wen greeted me, smiling as he shot a glare to Eller. Stone quietly followed from behind.

"Some things will never change." Stone commented lightly.

"So what did you come here for?" I asked. I don't receive guest often, much less three of them at the same time.

"To chat." answered Stone, smiling.

"To crash at your place, since the inn is full." replied Wen.

Eller pointed out teasingly, "Don't you think what you mean is - to crash at your place, since I'm broke?"

"That would be you!" Wen immediately retorted.

"I'm not!"

"So where will you sleep tonight?"

"…here." Eller softly answered.

Seeing Wen gave him the 'I-knew-it' look, Eller immediately defended himself, "What's wrong with staying at a friend's house? At least I didn't come after getting chased out from home like you!"

"That's a lie!"

"So _that's _what actually happened?" Stone asked, looking quite astonished. I invited him to sit down and pass him a cup of tea.

"No!"

Shaking his head, Stone said, "Seriously it's been more than twenty years. Would you guys stop it already?"

"I've told you, you're wrong!"

"Fine, fine. Guess I'm wrong, I'm sorry." Stone shrugged. I could never understand how Wen and his wife can keep fighting for all these years. A stay-at-the-Holy-Temple-Wen-when-he-supposed-to-return-home was enough for us to know there was something wrong between those two. Things did get better when he became a teacher, since he had Elmairy during those times. Seeing the Leaf Knight in-training going back and forth between Wen and his wife made me wonder if they swapped their identity. Elmairy was far more responsible compared to his teacher.

The fighting was certainly long lasting, for it to still happen now. I began to suspect if, after our retirement, Wen made it his personal mission to visit (and stay at our places) every time he had a fight with his wife. Since I've never heard such things from the others, perhaps this was his first time doing so.

Though it was fairly obvious everyone side-stepped the important issue of asking my consent for them to stay overnight, and deciding by themselves to do just that. Of course, if, as Eller said, the reason for them staying here because of financial problem, the first person I expect to do so was Hayseth.

Listening to their argument was quite amusing, but I must stop them before things getting out of hands.

"Where did you buy all these?"

Stone threw me a question, trying to lighten the atmosphere. We still had plenty of them seeing I'm the only one eating. Eller was too busy narrating his Lan's tales that he barely picked a piece or two.

"Eller brought it here." I explained.

"They're from Lan's dad bakery. Quite good, isn't it?" Eller immediately piped in, waiting for praise. Still looking a bit embarrassed, Wen helped himself with the treat.

While the two were eating, Eller opened the window closest to the dining table and gazed at the view. It was a tranquil night, with nothing to be seen.

"It's empty." Eller remarked softly, gazing at the sky.

"The stars are hiding." I commented, looking at the scenery outside, which has little to offer, seeing how darkness enveloped each and everything.

After we retired and Neo left to start his adventure, I always gaze at the night sky, searching for the stars, wondering if he would be all right on his own. Forgetting your own luggage certainly was not a good sign for a would-be-adventurer. In the end we'd never succeed in returning his luggage to him. I believe they all shared the same concern (even if they never say it aloud) as it was easy gathering all ten of them after I received the first letter from Neo.

Though I didn't have to worry about him anymore, since he has Aldrizzt by his side.

A few fireflies slowly scattered around, contributing colours to the surrounding and making it a bit brighter than before.

"Just what are you thinking about?" I asked, seeing how Eller looked a little absent-minded. The conversation between Wen and Stone stopped as they both looked at Eller. It was rare to see him keep his silence, especially now when he didn't need to wear the Ice Knight's facade anymore.

Looking dazed, he softly replied, "On my way here, I passed a nice place. There's a pretty river nearby...and fireflies. A lot of them! It'll be great if Lan's there too! We will start our picnic with chiffon cake, followed with apple pie... and... " Stopping his sentence mid-way, he continue looking at the scenery.

"I miss him."

There was a trace of sadness in his voice.

Nodding his head, Wen said, "I understand. I shall accompany you to the river and see the fireflies later. And bring cakes for our little picnic."

"Who wants to go with you!" Eller immediately exclaimed, looking totally disgusted. At the side Stone almost choked his bread.

"Ah, right. We caught a glimpse of a blue-haired guy on our way here. It should be Ceo, I believe?" Wen said as he refilled the tea, passing it to his companion that almost suffocated to death.

"Even if it's him, what's the matter? It's not like he can't leave the Holy Temple." Eller pointed out, obviously confused why Wen questioned Ceo's whereabouts.

"Don't you think it seems like something is off?" Stone questioned.

"Like what? Ceo's run away? It's Ceo we're talking about!"

"Yeah, it's Ceo, so what will happen if he really disappeared from the Holy Temple?"

"Let's see… the Holy Temple will collapse?" Eller replied.

"And Neo's going to kill Grisia for that." I lightly commented.

"Hey, you're right!" Wen exclaimed loudly.

"Wen."

Hearing the call, Wen looked at Stone and asked, "What?"

"You look oddly excited hearing Grisia's going to die."

"No, of course not!"

"Really?"

"Maybe…just a bit…" he caved in.

"A bit?" Eller echoed, looking totally unconvinced.

"Fine! A bit _more_ than a bit, but I can't help it okay? He always bullies Elmairy. It's not like I want him to die for real! And it's impossible for Neo to kill Grisia so stop making that kind of face!"

His answer fails to stop those two from frowning.

"Wen."

This time it was Eller's turn to call the former Leaf Knight.

Looking curious, he voiced out his question, "A bit more than a bit…how much is that?"

_That's _what caught your interest?

Well I could empathize with Wen. Grisia bullies Lesus quite often too.

"Chasel, you must immediately ask Lesus about Ceo." Stone said, looking quite anxious.

"Why must you worry so much? You just saw a guy you assumed to be Ceo... okay maybe he really _is _Ceo, and immediately started a what-if-Ceo's-running-away-from-the-Holy-Temple scenario. I don't believe you." Eller shrugged.

Undeterred, Stone reasoned, "It's precisely because it's highly unlikely to happen that it's going to happen! Just like when Wen found Neo's tattered body in the Holy Temple and punched him awake-"

"I just 'gently touched' him a bit, okay?" Wen immediately refuted and cut off Stone's words at the same time.

"Perhaps it was because you're being _too gentle_ that you're shouting 'Sun is dying!' while running around!" Eller snorted.

"Because he is Neo! Who's going to believe he's going to die because of injuries? Death by starvation in the middle of nowhere is more likely!"

I couldn't agree more. Even his own platoon had difficulties in believing their captain was heavily injured at that time.

Coughing lightly, Stone continued, "Which means, based on that -"

"There's a chance Ceo _did_ run away from home, for whatever reason we still didn't know yet?" Eller interrupted.

"Lesus didn't tell me anything." I informed. I'm on Eller's side, believing the other two are just being paranoid.

"Of course he didn't say anything, because it's just happened today! We need to gather everyone at once!"

"That would be nice. It's been a while." Wen immediately agreed, for a totally different reason.

Eller was silent for the longest time, seemingly in deep thinking. Finally, he looked at us and asked, "So should we include, or exclude, our Storm Knight?"

* * *

A/N: Just a teeny tiny little bit story of the teachers. So the first day Ceo's missing:

A meeting was conducted, Ice delivery service and a visit to Chasel's house. Plus someone claims to see Ceo. (Got to say I love Stone's logic.)


	5. 5 That Thing

Checked by Gimei.

* * *

Disclaimer : LSK is not mine.

* * *

Grisia Sun

* * *

That _thing_ was here.

Surely this was not happening to me? It must be a nightmare! Or perhaps I'm hallucinating for thinking too much?

Lets try again.

I closed my eyes.

_One second... Two second... Three!_

My eyes snapped open.

To my dismay, that thing was still here.

I looked at the culprit; the person responsible for bringing it over and placing it on my desk. I should get rid of it as soon as possible! Burn it! Throw it out of the window! Pass it to anyone and ask them to settle the problem! Or just shove it back to him!

"I'm sorry..." he started to apologize.

_If you're sorry, would that means you're willing to take responsibilities?_

"But..."

He quickly justified his action. Hidden behind his reasons I could barely see a flash of amusement in his eyes, as if he's enjoying my misery. I must see it wrong. He was not Earth.

Of course I know it was not his fault. So then...

_What should I do?_

* * *

Well, I guess it was a little confusing. So let me explain from the beginning.

The search team for Storm mentioned yesterday?

That was _not_ going to happen.

Not anytime soon.

Because the Pope told us we were only allowed to do so _after_ we finish up the accumulated paperwork inside Storm's room, and ensuring the incoming paperwork will be completed smoothly, even without him around.

Storm's disappearance had destroyed all the routines in the Holy Temple. There were no gossiping knights in the hallway, no church hermits looking at the female clerics through the window (they should thank me for promising Teacher that I would go on an adventure), and of course, currently I didn't have any of Ice's blueberry pie with me. He must have been busy.

_Don't tell me yesterday was the last treat from Ice?_

Adair, help me!

_"Finish your own paperwork or I'll deduct your salary."_

Always, he always does that! I swear, that shameless old man really loves to take my salary as his hostage. I want to believe it was just a joke, but no, he repeated his threat in a note attached to the paperwork that Leaf 'kindly' sent to me.

Everyone was busy correcting their own - which means I couldn't ask for helps from anyone else - and on top of that we still need to search for him?

_Storm, you bastard!_

Sitting on the chair and correcting a huge pile of paperwork on my desk, I believe it really was a miracle for Storm not to collapse through all these years, he really had high endurance.

See, Judgment? Miracles do exist!

Correcting paperwork and having breakfast. (I know it's already noon, but breakfast is breakfast, it doesn't matter _when_ I have it.) Continue correcting paperwork and taking lunch. (Please don't bother asking me when I had my lunch either.) Returning to correcting them and unfortunately, the pile of uncorrected one was still higher compared to the corrected one...

Oh.

You don't believe me?

What?

The Sun Knight would rather die than correcting a bunch of paperwork?

He has Leaf or Blaze or Cloud or Roland or Adair to ask for help?

Well, sorry to say this but I really _am_ correcting my paperwork. It's not like I didn't want to do it before, just that there were more pressing matters that need my attention. Though I was reluctant, I _had_ to entrust my work to Storm. No, I'm not bullying him! I was forced to do so! I even correcting my teacher's paperwork before, no questions asked.

After all, do you know what's going to happen if the teacher of mine suddenly decides to return and discover the Holy Temple was in a mess? He's going to kill me a thousand times over!

No! I'm not going to let it happen. I won't let the Holy Temple's operation comes to a halt after all my hard work! The new king had been crowned and things were going to get better. And though it's a pity that I failed to bring Elijah back to the Holy Temple, at least I have Roland by my side now.

Becoming the Hell Knight only for Storm to disappear just weeks later, Roland's luck sure sucks, huh?

Anyway, if worst comes to worst, I'm going to commit suicide (in an elegant way) and entrust Judgment with my corpse so as to prevent the chance of Resurrection when the time comes.

And that's why, to prevent such a future, if correcting paperwork was the only solution, then I'm going to do it!

But this was too much! It will take forever to finish them! And I've yet to apply my facial mask...

Suddenly a knock was heard and my door opened, revealing the triple black knight. He stared at me... scrutinized me ups and down, for a minute. His attention was directed towards the paperwork arranged neatly on my desk, divided into two, finished and unfinished work.

"Don't say anything." I warned, gritted my teeth in anger.

He didn't interfere when the Pope threatened me with my salary. He was there, watching.

Just watching.

_And here I thought you're my best friend!_

He obliged, and placed a hand to my forehead and the other to his. I quickly swatted off his hand.

"I'm not sick."

Who does he think I am? I've never been sick ever since I became the Sun Knight. Fainting because of blood loss was a different matter altogether!

Still not saying anything, he casually sat on my bed while I continue with my work... a little distracted. The feeling of being stared at was really uncomfortable.

Argh... This is so frustrating!

_I can't do my job like this!_

"Fine. I'm sorry, I was wrong. Just talk, okay? It's getting creepy."

"Five minutes." he spoke out.

"What?"

"For you to ask me to be quiet, and change your mind afterwards."

_He counted?_

"You tell me if anyone can stay calm being stared at by a man in silence!" I protested.

Surprisingly he nodded his head.

"Excluding you." I added another condition.

Giving a faint smile, he replied, "There _is_ one."

"Who?" I asked, a little curious.

"Ice."

_Tch! I should have known!_

In a serious note he said, "I've asked Storm's vice-captain, and he confessed that he didn't notice anything off. Personally, I don't really think you were the reason. He can always lash out at you as he always do. I'm afraid it was something else."

_Stupid Lesus. You really don't care that your best friend gets beaten up by his fellow knight?_

I sighed. "I've done my part of consolidating believers, preventing Son of the God of War from marrying the princess to prevent future trouble, and it's not like our new king is going to raise taxes as he pleases either. The Cathedral of Shadow God was too far to be a threat to us. I guess for us to not have a problem is a problem in itself?"

"Sighing will reduce your life span for three seconds, Grisia."

"That only applies to you!"

"It's weird." he started again.

"What?" I asked off-handedly, still focus on correcting the paperwork.

"For you to correct paperwork instead of me. Isn't it always the other way round?"

_Yeah, which means you should take my place and wear the facial mask!_

_Hey, wait a minute..._

Turning around to face my best friend who's not supposed to be my best friend, I smiled and kindly offered, "How about _you_ apply the mask?"

It must be hilarious to see the serious Lesus Judgment applying the -

"No, thanks." he rejected flatly, cutting my thoughts along the way.

"Come on, it's for your own good!"

I glanced at his waist; right, no sword. He won't be able to commit suicide even if he wants to. Half pink and half green facial mask. What would _that_ look on him?

"No, Grisia. I'm not interested."

"Fine, you're no fun."

"I know."

_You're not suppose to agree with me!_

"Why did you come here, Lesus?"

"So I'm not allowed to visit you, Knight-Captain Sun?" he replied, mirth hiding in his tone.

"You yourself know what I meant!" I snapped, feeling more and more frustrated.

"I just want to ask you about Storm. No one has any idea why he left.. or where did he went to... I just can't think of anything. It feels kind of... unreal."

_Yeah, it was hard to believe that Storm out of all people was missing._

Where else would he go besides being cooped up inside his room, correcting paperwork like always?

"Still, you never cease to surprise me."

There was amusement in his voice, and I hate that! Let see what he's going to say.

"I've never thought there will be a day where you're diligently correcting your own paperwork."

_That's because the Pope is holding a hostage, damn it!_

All my words of retaliation disappears the moment I saw his face.

"Lesus?"

He showed a pained expression for an instant before regained his solemn demeanor, immediately replied to my call with a raised eyebrow.

"No, it's nothing."

This stubborn fellow wouldn't tell me his problem even if I asked, which means a little investigation will be required. Perhaps Cloud could help.

He frowned, but didn't probe any further.

"Have you packed for tomorrow?"

To have the topic changed all of a sudden, I'm at loss and asked, "Tomorrow? What happens?"

We haven't even decided on where to search for Storm yet. And since when did searching for Storm require me to pack my things? Just how far could he go in these two days?

"Don't tell me you've forgotten?" Still frowning, my question was met with another question of his.

"And that thing is?"

Not to brag or anything, but if I could still remember the odds at the selection that happened thirteen years ago, how could I forget things happening to me recently?

"Knight-Captain Sun, you and Knight-Captain Leaf are required to go to the Kingdom of Moon Orchid. You were asked to be the groomsman, remember?"

_Damn!_

"Lesus, will you..."

"No."

"I didn't say anything yet!"

"Either way, the answer is still 'no'."

"Please?"

"No."

The door was opened and closed again in response to my unspoken wish, and I was alone in my room.

It may be hard to believe, but Lesus can be cruel sometimes. Too cruel.

_So what should I do now?_

Correcting paperwork or packing things.

_Can I just skip on doing both?_

Oh, why didn't I use one of the three demands Lesus owed me, you ask?

Tsk, tsk. Don't be naive. Do you know how hard it was for me to finally gain those? I have to be extra careful on _when_ to use them, you know.

Just when I decide to prioritize the paperwork (yes, you heard me right, I _want_ to correct them) another knock was heard _again_.

"In the name of the God of Light, may Sun ask which brother decides to discuss His benevolence with Sun?"

I didn't receive any answer for my question. Now that was new.

_What? Given up already?_

"I'm sorry, I don't understand."

Never in my whole life have I heard such an honest response. Often they'll try to make an assumption or ask me for clarification, but not a single person had bluntly told me that no, he has no idea what nonsense I'm blabbering about, not that I can fault any of them. Even I have no idea what I'm talking about sometimes. Only one person would sincerely speak what was on his mind. Only him.

I opened up the door and gestured him in.

"You really speak in a different manner compared to before."

"Because that is what's required from a Sun Knight." I said absent-mindedly.

"As I thought, you're a good Sun Knight, Grisia."

He was sincere but I didn't feel praised at all. Being with him was comforting, yet painful at times, since I still feel like I'm stealing the position from him, since I still wonder how things would differ, if he was the one chosen.

If this is a story of Roland Sun and Grisia, would he be happier?

Regardless, at least he wouldn't have died.

"I really should learn more about you guys." he continued. I can vaguely see his smile beneath his mask.

"You'll learn about us eventually. Don't worry about that!"

"Will I?"

His voice was soft, barely audible, which only added guilt in my heart.

Was it my fault for never trying to look for you?

_Sorry, Roland._

In front of him, I smiled brightly and replied, "Of course!"

"So, why did you come here?" I asked, feeling a little suspicious.

"It's about Storm. Can I do anything to help?"

"Well..."

* * *

p/s : What's on your mind, Lesus? Was it that hard to believe that your best friend is obediently correcting his paperwork?

A/N : On an unrelated note, a line from their conversation will (probably) be further discussed later.


End file.
